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Although teatime isn’t usually Hapi’s thing, she appreciated the opportunity to relax after the less-than-stellar mission earlier that morning. Chasing Those Who Slither in the Dark had been a disappointing dead end for her and Lysithea, but saying yes to tea perked Lysithea back up. Much to Hapi’s surprise, she’s not the last person to arrive at the teatime Lysithea insisted everyone be on time for—Shez is still missing when she takes her seat.
“Afternoon, Eddy, Lys,” Hapi greets them.
“Good afternoon, Hapi,” Edelgard and Lysthiea enthusiastically reply. Hapi glances over the table before her, eyeing the tins of tea and the array of sweets on a small three-tier stand neatly set in the table’s centre: pastries, biscuits, and other fresh, mouth-watering delights with aromas that make Hapi’s chest warm.
“By the way, I wasn’t sure what you liked, so I have various options. Is there anything you’d like to try before Shez joins us?”
Hapi smiles at Lysithea’s bright-eyed enthusiasm, though a part of her feels guilty for her inevitable response.
“Thanks, Lys, but—”
“Oh, and before I forget—Hapi, have you, um, seen Shez anywhere by any chance?”
Edelgard gives her a knowing look, and Hapi holds back a smile at Lysithea’s sudden sheepish tone. “S? He’s probably with The Bert. I called in a favour and asked him to snag some coffee before we start our little tea party.”
Lysithea scrunches her nose. “Coffee?”
“Is that a problem?” Hapi raises a brow.
“No, no, of course not. I assume you won’t be having tea then?”
Hapi tries to keep eye contact with Lysithea, but her disappointed expression festers the guilt in her chest.
“To be honest, I was just going to have coffee…”
“But it wouldn’t be teatime if you didn’t have some tea, would it? Especially after all the effort Lysithea has gone into making this for us,” Edelgard says, her tone firm.
“...You got anything cinnamon?”
“Of course!” Lysithea smiles brightly. “Let me brew some for you now.”
Hapi stuffs a pasty in her mouth while Lysithea pours the tea.
“Fanks,” Hapi says, mouth full. Swallowing her food and taking a sip, Hapi glances at Lysithea. “So. Is there any reason you don’t like coffee?”
“Coffee is gross.” Lysithea shudders. “It’s like hot bean water.”
A charitable opinion on coffee. Hapi’s heard it called worse. “I dunno about hot bean water, but I get it. It’s an acquired taste.” Hapi shrugs. “Hey, Eddy? Do you and The Bert ever talk about his coffee-drinking habits?”
Edelgard shakes her head. “Not since he’s started sharing his passion for coffee with you, Shamir, and Anna.”
Hapi hums in agreement. “Well, hanging with The Bert is definitely more enjoyable to be around when we drink coffee together, I suppose..”
“I’m glad to hear it.” Edelgard chuckles. “Hubert may come across as cold, but he’s very passionate.”
“Passionate for making me eat vegetables,” mutters Lysithea. Hapi snorts in amusement.
“Lysithea, you know Hubert means well,” Edelgard says gently.
Lysithea flushes red. “I still don’t see why I have to eat *all* my carrots...” Hapi tunes out the conversation, savouring the woody taste of cinnamon and enjoying the easy company until she spots Shez approaching the table with a bag in hand.
Edelgard crosses her arms. “Perhaps Shez could be the voice of reason in this matter.”
“That reminds me,” Hapi interjects, placing her elbow on the table and leaning on a hand. Her gaze shifted to Lysithea. “You and S. I’ve noticed the two of you getting close lately.”
Lysithea nearly chokes on her tea. “W-what are you talking about?” she stammers.
“You know what I mean, right Eddy?”
Edelgard’s silence indicates she’s planning her following words carefully. “I have no idea what you speak of.”
Hapi rolls her eyes. “You know Eddy, you of all people should—ah, speaking of.”
Shez takes a seat and slides the bag across the table. “One extra order of ground coffee beans, courtesy of Hubert.”
“Appreciate it, S.” Hapi peeks into the bag. “And it’s a happy medium too—not too coarse, not too fine. I’ll have to thank The Bert after this.”
Hapi closes the bag and returns to her drink, gaze flickering between Shez and Lysithea. Taking a long, loud sip of her cup of coffee, Hapi contentedly ignores Lysithea’s attempt to glare daggers at her from across the table.
“Did I miss something while I was gone?” Shez asks, confused by the tense atmosphere.
“Nothing!” Lysithea blurts impassionately.
“Nope,” Hapi says simultaneously, hiding a smile behind her cup.
“O-OK?” Shez frowns. Hapi’s smirk widens at his flabbergasted expression.
Edelgard sighs. “I think it’s best that you don’t think too hard about it.”
“We were talking about Lys rummaging through the camp pantry the other night,” Hapi says.
A scandalised gasp escapes Lysithea’s lips. “I beg your pardon?! Why you..!” She grits her teeth before a realisation hits her. Lysithea stands, dramatically pointing a finger across the table. “Hey, wait a minute! You were in the pantry looking for midnight snacks too!”
“I was looking for Coco and Yuri-bird. What can I say?” Hapi shrugs, using a half-truth to save face.
Edelgard covers her mouth to hide her smile. Shez whistles, amused by the joke that inevitably flies over Lysithea’s head.
“That’s not true! I saw you eating the pastries!”
“I didn’t eat pastries that night. Besides, I wasn’t the one caught with crumbs on my face, Lys,” Hapi replies.
“I…I—” Lysithea flounders, a bright red blush blooming on her cheeks as she swipes a pasty and sits back down. “Whatever. Enough about that then; you’ll turn my tea sour.”
“So much for the friendly chit-chat, huh, Edelgard?”
Edelgard shakes her head. “Quite. Though I had hoped to escape such arguing, I highly doubt anything could compare to Hubert and Ferdinand, even on a good day.” She sighs.
Hapi’s eyes widen, recalling some gossip Constance once divulged with a scandalous grin. She clears her throat to gain the attention of everyone at the table. “Sorry about that, Eddy. But speaking of Ferdie—is it true, Eddy? That he and Dorry got caught—you know. Out in the forest?”
Edelgard groans. “I don’t know, Hapi. But I know someone got bit by one of Bernadetta’s carnivorous plants.”
Lysithea snorts, and Hapi’s jaw drops. “How did you…? Ugh, never mind. It’s obvious. The Bert told you. He probably got a kick out of that one,” she grumbles.
“Who can say?” Edelgard smiles, and Hapi swears she catches Edelgard winking at a grateful Lysithea.
“Hold on, hold on. I need to hear this. How did that even happen?” Shez asks Hapi, visibly confused.
Hapi frowns and crosses her arms—she supposes she can sate Shez’s curiosity.
“Bernie-Bee was showing me these plants she’s been growing. Apparently, they eat spiders and dead flies, so I decided to try and feed one myself. It turns out I fed the one plant that can bite pretty hard. I ended up bleeding a whole lot. It was pretty gross.”
Lysithea pales. “I changed my mind. Why are we talking about this over teatime? I think I might be sick.”
Before Hapi could share any more grotesque details, Edelgard and Shez interject with apologies to change the subject.
“Here, let me get some cake to get your mind off that,” Shez insists, cutting Lysithea a large slice. Hapi smirks, watching a shy Lysithea tentatively take it from Shez.
“Th-thank you.”
“Aw, how sweet,” Hapi coos sarcastically. Lysithea stabs her cake with a fork.
Shez suddenly perks up in Hapi’s peripheral vision. Her stomach sinks, knowing it’s nothing good for her.
“Hey, Hapi. Speaking of sweet, Yuri told me you have a pretty good singing voice.”
Hapi stares at Shez, waiting for a punchline that doesn’t come. “Wait, he did?”
“Uh, yeah. Yuri said you’re a little rough, but the kids from the local town enjoyed the impromptu duet you two put on.”
An undignified snort escapes from Lysithea. “I’ll believe it when I hear it.”
“I’m quite curious as well,” Edelgard says. Hapi sees right through Edelgard’s inscrutable tone, spotting her smirk.
“Yeah, no thanks. I’m not falling for that one.”
“That’s quite a shame. I’m sure Constance would adore seeing you two perform together,” Edelgard says. “Dorothea and Manuela have told me they hate to hog all the spotlight while singing with the other mercenaries.”
Hapi huffs. “Where did this come from, again?”
Shez blinks. “Uh, Yuri?”
Hapi suppresses a sigh. “No, that’s not…listen, whatever Yuri told you about me singing, don’t believe it. That was all him.”
Shez crosses his arms. “I dunno, I thought so too, but Yuri seemed pretty adamant.”
“Why is the world against me today?” Hapi asks aloud, overdramatically slumping in her chair.
“Against you?! The audacity...!” Lysithea exclaims.
Hapi sips her tea. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Don’t worry, Lysithea, it’s just some friendly banter. We all still love you,” Shez grins.
Nearly dropping her tea, Lysithea incomprehensibly sputters something about a book, trying to move the conversation along.
Hapi won’t have it. “Love, eh?” she repeats, elbowing Edelgard.
“Hey!” Lysithea exclaims while Edelgard hangs her head. “Here we go again,” Edelgard mutters.
Despite this morning’s mission being a dud, Hapi couldn’t help but smile at her friends as they chatted about everything and nothing under the afternoon sun. The threat of the Slitherers still loomed, but at times like this, Hapi was content to treasure the good moments with her odd, merry band as they came.